TORONTO--(Marketwire - December 12, 2007) - BrandIntel, a leader in online market
intelligence solutions, today announced the findings of an alternative
engine technology report, which highlights the consumer discussion and
sentiment for diesel and hybrid technologies against the traditional
gasoline engine. Due in part to new EPA fuel ratings announced in late
2006, diesel engines have been the most resilient to consumer sentiment
changes, as opposed to hybrid and gasoline technology, which both witnessed
a larger drop in appeal.

"In a time where gas prices are at a record high, it's clear that consumers
are seeking alternative choices to help defray costs at the pump. Our
research indicates that although hybrids have previously been a good
substitute for gasoline engines in the eyes of the consumer, diesel engines
are emerging as a comparable alternative, especially as many OEMs have
released -- or have plans to debut -- this type of clean engine
technology," said Alan Dean, VP of business Innovation at BrandIntel. "With that in
mind, it's possible that diesel technology could become the new alternative
engine of choice, making it all the more important for manufacturers to
understand how best to target this type of technology to the intended
automotive consumer. By better understanding consumers through their
online engagement, auto makers are better equipped to effectively target
marketing campaigns and are able to make improved business decisions in the
automotive space, as a result."

The BrandIntel report, titled "Engine Technology Analysis," focuses on
consumer discussions and sentiment scores around gasoline, hybrid and
diesel engines. Based on analysis of consumer-created content, the report
captures data from January 1, 2006 to October 31, 2007. Key findings from
the report include:

-- Discussion share for diesel engines increased by 75 percent in 2007
versus 2006, while hybrid discussion increased by just over 16 percent.
-- Over the course of 2007, Mercedes-Benz gained momentum relative to the
diesel engine market leader, Volkswagen. Discussion share for Mercedes-
Benz diesel technology increased over 106 percent, while discussion volumes
for Volkswagen experienced a 46 percent decrease.
-- Although consumers expressed high sentiment around hybrid technology's
reliability as opposed to clean engine diesel technology (partially due to
the perceived quality associated with top hybrid manufacturers such as
Toyota and Lexus), the top three attributes consumers discussed around each
technology were fuel economy, engine appeal and environmental impact.
Diesel engines received more positive consumer sentiment around these three
attributes than hybrid technology.
-- Despite high gasoline technology discussion levels, this type of
engine experienced a significant drop in discussion share in Q3 2007, as
consumer content shifted towards more efficient clean engine alternatives
like hybrid and diesel technology, which have both seen an increase in
discussion volume since the latter part of 2007.

For this report, BrandIntel tracked more than 480 million raw search
results on the Internet but refined those results through technological
filters and human analysis to utilize only the highest quality data --
totaling more than 34,127 consumer mentions on diesel, hybrid and gasoline
engine technology. BrandIntel analyzed the most pertinent consumer-created
content on the Internet to measure for assigned sentiment scores and share
of discussion, rating the physical and emotional value of the results
(positive or negative). For automotive companies, this is especially
important in properly assessing consumer wants and needs and is effective
in forecasting macro level trends in the market place.

BrandIntel, a Brandimensions Inc. company, translates consumer-created
content into reliable intelligence, enabling businesses to advance the
science of decision-making. The company offers an information-delivery
platform combining human intelligence with award-winning technology for the
most trusted market data in the industry. The BrandIntel data helps
businesses validate critical business decisions, uncover new opportunities
for value creation, and get closer to customers. BrandIntel works with
Fortune 1000 companies and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with
offices in the United States.